THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  ILLINOIS 

LIBRARY 

370 
ie6e 

no.36-47 


ssarssssz*' 


UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS  BULLETIN 

Issued  Weekly 
Vol.  XXIII  June  1,  1926  .  No.  39 

[Entered  as  second-class  matter  December  11,  1912,  at  the  post  office  at  Urbana,  Illinois,  under  the 
Act  of  August  24,  1912.  Acceptance  for  mailing  at  the  special  rate  of  postage  provided  for  in 
section    1103,   Act  of  October  3,    1917,   authorized  July   31,    1918.] 


EDUCATIONAL  RESEARCH  CIRCULAR  XO.  4! 


BUREAU  OF  EDUCATIONAL  RESEARCH 
COLLEGE  OF  EDUCATION 


TEACHERS'  OBJECTIVES 

By 

Walter  S.  Monroe 
Director?  Bureau  of  Educational  Research 


mi  UN :::  Of  THE 

JUL  l<  1926 
UHWERSffY  OF  IU11*1 


PUBLISHED  BY  THE  UNIVERSITY  OF  ILLINOIS 
URBANA 


TEACHERS,  OBJECTIVES 


<3  7o 

No  argument  is  needed  to  prove  that  in  performing  the  many 
phases  of  his  task,  a  teacher  should  be  guided  by  a  clear  understanding 
of  the  objectives  or  goals  to  be  attained  by  the  students  under  his  in- 
struction. However,  one  who  has  not  made  an  extensive  study  of  the 
topic  is  not  likely  to  comprehend  fully  the  meaning  of  the  phrase,  "a 
clear  understanding  of  objectives."  In  discussing  the  aim  of  education, 
we  frequently  use  such  terms  as  "health,"  "wealth,"  "citizenship," 
"character,"  "a  well-disciplined  mind,"  "adaptation  to  environment," 
"culture,"  "worthy  use  of  leisure,"  "social  efficiency,"  "appreciation" 
and  the  like.  In  so  far  as  these  words  and  phrases  have  meaning,  they 
describe  the  conduct  of  persons  who  have  been  "educated,"  and  hence 
are  ultimate  and  final  objectives  rather  than  immediate  goals  to  be  at- 
tained by  students  of  arithmetic,  algebra,  first-year  Latin,  geography, 
civics,  physics,  home  economics,  English  literature,  and  so  forth.  For  this 
"  reason  such  "high-sounding"  terms  cannot  be  very  helpful  to  a  teacher 
in  arriving  at  a  clear  understanding  of  his  immediate  objectives. 

Typical  statements  of  educational  objectives.  The  statement  of 
educational  objectives  formulated  by  the  Commission  on  the  Reorgani- 
zation of  Secondary  Education  has  become  widely  known  under  the 
title  "Cardinal  Principles  of  Secondary  Education."1  This  formulation 
is  epitomized  in  the  statement  that  the  "main  objectives  of  education" 
are: 

1.  Health  5..  Citizenship 

2.  Command  of  fundamental  processes  6.  Worthy  use  of  leisure 

3.  Worthy  home  membership  7.  Ethical  character 

4.  Vocation 

A  committee  of  the  North  Central  Association  of  Colleges  and 
Secondary  Schools  has  given  us  a  slightly  different  statement  of  ob- 
jectives. 

The  ultimate  aims  stated  in  terms  of  disposition   and  ability  may  be  sum- 
marized as  follows: 

1.  To  maintain  health  and  physical  fitness. 

2.  To  use  leisure  time  in  right  ways. 

3.  To  engage  successfully  in  vocational  activities. 

4.  To    sustain    successfully    certain    definite    relationships    such    as    domestic,    com- 
munity, civic  and  the  like.2 


luReport  on  Cardinal  Principles  of  Secondary  Education."  (Commission  on  the 
reorganization  of  secondary  education.)  U.  S.  Bureau  of  Education  Bulletin,  1918, 
No.  35.  Washington,  1918.   32  p. 

2"Report  on  Standards  for  reorganization  of  secondary  school  curricula,  1924." 
North  Central  Association  of  Colleges  and  Secondary  Schools,  March  20.  21,  22,  1924.  p.  6. 

[3] 


Difficulties  in  applying  such  formulations  of  educational  objec- 
tives. Certain  difficulties  become  apparent  when  one  attempts  to  apply 
such  formulations  of  educational  objectives  in  devising  and  selecting 
learning  exercises.  Phrases  such  as  "ethical  character,"  "health,"  "right 
habits  of  conduct,"  "appreciation,"  "life  activities,"  and  "citizenship" 
do  not  express  concepts  that  a  teacher  is  able  to  apply  directly  in  de- 
ciding what  learning  exercises:{  to  assign.  Most  teachers  are  able  to 
associate  only  very  general  and  frequently  indefinite  meanings  with 
such  "high-sounding"  terms.  A  much  more  helpful  formulation  of  edu- 
cational objectives  may  be  secured  by  specifying  the  abilities  that  stu- 
dents are  expected  to  acquire  as  the  result  of  doing  the  assigned 
exercises. 

The  outcomes  of  learning  activity.  Whenever  a  student  engages 
in  mental  activity,  there  is  a  product  or  outcome,  generally  called 
"ability,"  which  functions  as  a  "control  of  conduct"  on  future  occasions. 
Before  a  child  has  studied  algebra,  his  response  to  an  algebraic  symbol, 
such  as  x2,  is  not  likely  to  be  the  correct  one.  If  asked  to  read  this 
symbol,  he  may  say,  "x  with  a  small  2  above  it."  After  he  has  studied 
algebra,  that  is  engaged  in  certain  learning  activities,  he  is  "changed." 
We  describe  the  change  by  saying  he  has  acquired  certain  abilities,  so 
that  when  asked  to  read  this  symbol  he  will  say,  "x  square."  One  out- 
come of  his  participation  in  certain  learning  activities  in  the  field  of 
algebra  is  a  "control  of  conduct"  which  enables  him  to  respond  correctly 
to  a  request  to  read  the  symbol  x2. 

If  a  student  who  has  not  studied  physics  is  asked  to  solve  a  problem 
that  requires  the  application  of  the  "law  of  falling  bodies,"  he  will  prob- 
ably be  unable  to  give  a  satisfactory  response.  When  he  masters  the 
law  of  falling  bodies  in  his  study  of  physics,  he  is  equipped  so  that  he 
is  able  to  apply  it  in  solving  problems.  Learning  the  law  of  falling 
bodies  means  acquiring  a  control  of  conduct. 

A  person  who  has  not  studied  music  may  be  equipped  with  con- 
trols of  conduct  so  that  he  is  bored  or  even  irritated  by  listening  to  the 
playing  of  a  highly  technical  musical  selection.  Such  a  person  may 
acquire  other  controls  of  conduct  as  a  result  of  studying  music  so  that 
his  response  to  the  rendition  of  a  technical  musical  selection  will  be 
characterized  by  satisfaction  and  pleasure  rather  than  by  dissatisfaction. 


3A  "learning  exercise"  is  anything  students  are  asked  to  do  as  a  means  of  edu- 
cating themselves. 

[4] 


The  change  which  has  taken  place  may  be  described  as  the  acquiring 
of  the  ability  to  appreciate  a  certain  type  of  music. 

The  illustrations  just  given  suggest  that  abilities  differ.  Ability  to 
read  "x2"  provides  a  type  of  control  of  conduct  different  in  certain  re- 
spects from  that  represented  by  "ability  to  apply  the  law  of  falling 
bodies"  or  by  '"ability  to  appreciate  a  highly  technical  musical  selec- 
tion." Certain  characteristics  of  the  situations  for  which  responses  are 
provided  and  the  nature  of  the  process  of  responding  furnish  a  basis 
for  a  classification  of  abilities. 

Types  of  outcomes  considered  as  controls  of  conduct.4  The  fol- 
lowing analysis  of  the  outcomes  of  learning  activity  is  not  perfect.  The 
boundaries  between  the  several  rubrics  are  not  well  defined  and  the 
reader  should  bear  in  mind  that  psychologically  all  abilities  have  certain 
characteristics  in  common.  However,  the  following  classification  will  be 
helpful  in  considering  certain  problems  relating  to  teaching. 

I.  Specific  habits;  motor  skills  and  fixed  associations.  Under  this 
head  we  place  all  those  outcomes  of  the  learning  process  which  function 
as  automatic  or  largely  mechanical  controls  of  conduct.  Names,  dates, 
events,  and  other  facts  which  have  been  memorized  belong  to  this  class. 
In  addition  there  are  many  habits  which  provide  automatic  motor  re- 
sponses. Examples  of  these  are  found  in  handwriting,  the  speaking  of 
a  foreign  language,  athletics,  music,  typewriting,  and  so  forth.  Specific 
habits  provide  ready-made  responses  to  familiar  situations. 

II.  Knowledge;  adaptive  controls  of  conduct.  Under  the  head  of 
knowledge  we  group  those  controls  of  conduct  (abilities)  that  function 
in  overcoming  difficulties  presented  by  new  situations.  We  commonly 
refer  to  them  as  ideas,  concepts,  meanings,  principles,  and  laws.  The 
distinction  between  specific  habits  and  knowledge  is  primarily  on  the 
basis  of  the  type  of  situation  for  which  a  response  is  provided.  If  the 
situation  is  familiar  and  the  person  possesses  a  ready-made  response, 
the  control  of  conduct  is  called  a  specific  habit.  If  the  situation  is  new, 
that  is  if  it  presents  a  problem  to  be  solved  and  a  response  is  manu- 
factured by  reflective  thinking,  knowledge  is  the  name  given  to  the 
controls  of  conduct  that  function. 


*The  rubrics  of  abilities  given  here  are  similar  to  those  given  by: 

Bagley,   W.   C.     Educational  Values.     New   York:      The   Macmillan   Company, 

1911,  Chapters  II,  III,  IV  and  V. 

Bagley,  W.  C,  and  Keith,  J.  A.  H.     An  Introduction  to  Teaching.     New  York: 

The  Macmillan  Company,  1924,  Chapter  IX. 


[5] 


III.  General  patterns  of  conduct.  An  ideal  may  be  thought  of  as 
a  general  pattern  to  which  conduct  will  conform  in  a  variety  of  situa- 
tions. Ideals  have  been  described  as  "master  ideas."  In  addition  to  the 
intellectual  element,  the  idea,  there  is  an  emotional  element  which  adds 
power  in  controlling  conduct.  Neatness,  honesty,  patriotism,  loyalty, 
altruism,  and  accuracy  are  names  for  certain  common  ideals. 

Attitudes  represent  a  number  of  less  tangible  but  very  important 
controls  of  conduct  which  furnish  general  patterns  of  conduct  or  "mind 
sets."  When  we  describe  a  person  as  being  "conservative,"  we  mean 
that  his  thinking  is  characterized  by  caution  and  also  by  reluctance  to 
accept  new  ideas.  The  word  "radical"  is  used  to  designate  the  opposite 
type  of  mind  or  attitude.  Other  words  which  designate  certain  attitudes 
are  scholarly,  open-minded,  prejudiced,  independent,  and  judicial. 

A  similar  kind  of  controls  of  conduct  is  commonly  designated  as 
"interests"  or  "tastes."  An  interest  in  or  a  preference  for  "Jazz"  causes 
one  to  seek  that  type  of  music  and  to  avoid  other  kinds.  An  interest 
in  outdoor  sports  directs  one's  leisure  activities.  What  is  called  "good 
taste"  controls  one  in  furnishing  his  home  or  in  buying  his  clothes. 

Determination  of  educational  objectives.  An  approach  to  the  de- 
termination of  the  immediate  objectives  is  furnished  by  the  principle 
that  a  teacher's  immediate  purpose  is  to  cause  his  students  to  acquire 
certain  abilities.  "Formulating  immediate  objectives"  means  "determ- 
ining the  abilities  they  are  to  acquire."  A  number  of  workers  in  the 
field  of  curriculum  construction  have  made  a  beginning  in  the  identi- 
fication of  the  particular  abilities  which  our  schools  are  expected  to 
engender.  For  example,  Bobbitt  in  his  recent  volume,  "How  to  Make  a 
Curriculum,"  lists  a  large  number  of  abilities  as  objectives  for  the  high 
school.  Other  workers,  accepting  the  thesis  that  the  general  aim  of  edu- 
cation is  to  prepare  children  for  efficient  participation  in  the  activities 
of  adult  life,  have  attempted  to  analyze  the  activities  that  adults  now 
perform  for  the  purpose  of  ascertaining  what  abilities  are  necessary  for 
satisfactory  participation.  Thousands  of  pages  of  the  writings  of  adults 
have  been  analyzed  in  order  to  determine  what  words  children  should 
be  asked  to  learn  to  spell  during  their  study  of  this  subject  in  the  ele- 
mentary school.  Masses  of  data  have  been  collected  and  analyzed  for 
the  purpose  of  determining  the  types  of  arithmetical  problems  which 
adults  find  it  necessary  to  solve.  Hundreds  of  periodicals  have  been 
read  for  the  purpose  of  determing  the  frequency  of  occurrence  of  allu- 
sions to  geographical  and  historical  facts.  Elaborate  investigations  have 
been  conducted  in  other  fields  for  the  purpose  of  determining  the  abil- 
ities which  children  should  be  asked  to  acquire  in  school. 

[6] 


Such  curriculum  studies  are  helpful  but  they  provide  only  limited 
assistance  to  the  teacher  who  is  endeavoring  to  arrive  at  a  clear  under- 
standing of  the  objectives  to  be  attained  by  his  students.  They  do  not 
reveal  the  nature  of  the  abilities  to  be  acquired  by  them.  For  example, 
the  determination  of  the  words  which  adults  use  most  frequently  in 
written  expression  does  not  yield  complete  specifications  of  the  abilities 
that  students  should  acquire  in  the  field  of  spelling.  One  way  to  spell 
words  correctly  is  to  consult  the  dictionary  and  copy  the  letters  in  the 
order  given  there.  In  this  case  "ability  to  spell"  would  mean  "ability 
to  find  a  word  in  the  dictionary  plus  ability  to  copy  the  letters  in  the 
proper  order."  Of  course  such  a  definition  of  spelling  ability  is  absurd 
for  commonly  used  words  but  it  is  possible  to  define  various  degrees 
of  fluency  in  the  spelling  of  words  used  in  written  expression.  Hence  a 
list  of  the  most  commonly  used  words  only  partially  specifies  the  abili- 
ties to  be  acquired  by  a  study  of  spelling.  The  determination  of  the 
frequency  of  allusions  to  historical  facts  in  periodical  literature  cannot 
reveal  the  precise  nature  of  the  historical  abilities  required  for  efficient 
reading  of  such  material.  In  addition  to  determining  what  dates,  per- 
sons, events  and  other  historical  facts  should  be  learned,  it  is  necessary 
to  define  what  it  means  to  knozv  a.  fact.  The  job-analysis  method  of 
curriculum  construction  does  not  furnish  this  definition. 

A  hierarchy  of  educational  objectives.  The  aim  of  education  may 
be  considered  from  several  points  of  view  which  tend  to  form  a  se- 
quence. The  immediate  objective  of  the  teacher  is  to  stimulate  and 
direct  his  students  so  that  they  will  acquire  certain  abilities  such  as, 
ability  to  multiply  one  integer  by  another,  ability  to  solve  quadratic 
equations  of  a  specified  type,  ability  to  type  from  copy  a  specified 
number  of  words  per  minute,  ability  to  translate  certain  passages  of  a 
foreign  language,  ability  to  apply  principles  of  physics  in  solving 
problems,  ability  to  plan  and  construct  a  table  or  chair  in  the  shop, 
ability  to  organize  information  relating  to  a  topic  and  present  it  effect- 
ively, and  the  like.  Sometimes  the  teacher  shifts  his  objective  from 
abilities  to  be  acquired  to  the  learning  activities  in  which  he  asks  his 
students  to  engage.  In  such  cases  his  efforts  are  focused  on  getting  his 
students  to  do  certain  problems  or  laboratory  exercises,  to  write  themes 
or  book  reviews,  and  the  like.  This  type  of  immediate  objective  has 
been  described  as  "ground-to-be-covered"  and  frequently  is  thought  of 
in  terms  of  the  pages  of  a  textbook  to  be  read,  or  a  list  of  topics  (usually 
expressed  as  an  outline)  to  be  studied. 

Abilities  are  engendered  by  the  school  in  order  that  the  students 
may  be  equipped  with  controls  of  conduct  for  performing  the  duties  of 

[7] 


adult  life.  Hence  the  future  behavior  or  conduct  of  students  may  be 
considered  as  the  ultimate  objectives  of  education  and  has  been  defined 
in  two  ways;  first  by  describing  its  general  character  or  quality  using 
such  terms  as  socially  efficient,  good  citizen,  honest,  trained  mind,  and 
the  like,  and  second,  by  specifying  the  duties  to  be  performeed  or  the 
occasions  for  the  functioning  of  controls  of  conduct.  An  illustration  of 
stating  ultimate  educational  objectives  from  the  second  point  of  view 
is  furnished  by  the  following  enumeration  of  the  classes  of  activities  in 
which  adults  engage: 

1.  Language  activities;  social  intercommunication. 

2.  Health  activities. 

3.  Citizenship  activities. 

4.  General  social  activities — meeting  and  mingling  with  others. 

5.  Spare-time  activities,  amusements,  recreations. 

6.  Keeping  one's  self  mentally  fit — analagous  to  the  health  activities  of  keeping 
one's  self  physically  fit. 

7.  Religious  activities. 

8.  Parental   activities,   the  upbringing  of  children,   the   maintenance  of   a   proper 
home  life. 

9.  Unspecialized  or  non-vocational  practical  activities. 
10.  The  labors  of  one's  calling.5 

The  four  classes  or  orders  of  objectives  described  in  the  preceding 

discussion  may  be  summarized  as  follows: 

1.  Learning  activities  to  be  engaged  in.  This  type  of  ob- 
jective is  usually  described  in  terms  of  learning  exercises 
to  be  done  or  aground-to-be-covered." 


Immediate 
Objectives 


Ultimate 
Objectives 


2.  Abilities  to  be  engendered.  When  objectives  are 
thought  of  in  terms  of  "abilities  to  be  engendered,"  the 
doing  of  exercises  becomes  a  means  to  this  end. 

3.  Future  behavior  described  in  general  terms.6  Using 
such  words  as  citizenship,  character,  culture,  and  so  forth. 

4.  Duties  or  occasions  for  the  use  of  abilities.  The  rela- 
tion between  duties  and  "future  behavior"  may  be  de- 
scribed by  saying  that  the  terms,  such  as  character,  cit- 
izenship, social  efficiency,  and  so  forth  used  in  describing 
future  behavior  specify  in  a  general  way  how  the  duties 
of  adult  life  are  to  be  performed.7 


5Bobbitt,  Franklin.  How  to  Make  a  Curriculum.  New  York:  Houghton  Mifflin 
Company,  1924,  p.  8-9. 

•Objectives  of  this  order  may  describe  the  behavior  of  an  individual  or  the  con- 
duct of  groups. 

7The  technique  employed  in  determining  the  duties  of  adult  life  has  been  called 
"job  analysis"  or  "activity  analysis/'     The  purpose  of  such   analyses  is  to  determine 


[8] 


This  hierarchy  of  objectives  provides  a  basis  for  classifying  state- 
ments of  aim  and  hence  a  means  for  indicating  their  merits  for  teachers. 
The  "Cardinal  Principles  of  Education"  clearly  come  under  the  third 
order  of  objectives.  Bobbin's  list  of  activities  belongs  under  the  fourth. 
Teachers  should  focus  their  attention  upon  the  "abilities  to  be  engend- 
ered" and  they  should  always  consider  learning  activity  (the  doing  of 
assigned  exercises)  as  a  means  to  that  end.  The  teacher,  however, 
should  not  forget  that  the  ultimate  purpose  of  the  school  is  to  contribute 
to  equipping  students  for  socially  efficient  performance  of  the  duties  of 
adult  life. 

How  to  state  immediate  objectives.  It  is  comparatively  easy  to 
state  some  immediate  objectives  in  definite  terms  of  ability  to  do. 
For  example,  in  the  case  of  silent  reading  the  desired  achievement  may 
be  described  in  terms  of  the  rate  of  reading  (words  per  minute)  and 
the  degree  of  comprehension  as  measured  by  some  standardized  test. 
In  handwriting  we  have  standards  of  achievement  in  terms  of  the  rate 
of  handwriting  (letters  per  minute)  and  the  quality  as  measured  on 
some  handwriting  scale.  The  immediate  objectives  in  stenography  and 
typewriting  may  be  stated  in  terms  of  rate  and  accuracy  of  perform- 
ance. 

In  most  high-school  subjects  it  is  not  yet  possible  to  describe  the 
abilities  to  be  engendered  in  such  objective  terms  but  the  teacher  will 
find  it  helpful  to  classify  according  to  the  following  plan  the  abilities 
he  is  attempting  to  engender. 

I.  Fixed  controls  of  conduct  (specific  habits) 

A.  Motor  skills 

B.  Fixed  associations 

II.  Adaptive  controls  of  conduct  (knowledge) 

A.  Perceptual  or  relatively  concrete  meanings 

B.  Abstract  and  general  meanings  or  concepts 

C.  Principles 

III.  General  patterns  of  conduct  (generalized  controls) 

A.  Ideals 

B.  Attitudes 

C.  Interests  and  tastes 


the  duties  that  adults  perform.  After  this  has  been  done  it  remains  to  determine 
the  relative  importance  of  the  duties  revealed  and  also  the  behavior  that  is  desirable 
in  connection  with  each  duty.     For  an  account  of  the  technique  of  job  analysis  see: 

Charters,  W.  W.     Curriculum  Construction.     New  York:  The  Macmillan  Com- 
pany, 1923,  p.  352. 

[9] 


In  addition  to  failing  to  distinguish  between  the  different  types  of 
abilities,  teachers  frequently  lack  a  clear  understanding  of  other  aspects 
of  the  abilities  they  are  attempting  to  engender.  For  example,  in  arith- 
metic it  is  generally  agreed  that  teachers  are  to  engender  the  abilities 
necessary  for  making  calculations  with  integers  and,  when  requested, 
they  state  their  objectives  as  being  to  engender  ability  to  do  column 
addition,  ability  to  do  addition  with  carrying,  and  so  forth.  Such 
analytical  statements  of  objectives  are  good  so  far  as  they  go  but  recent 
psychological  studies  indicate  that  the  specific  habits  which  students 
must  acquire  in  order  to  be  proficient  in  calculation  are  much  more 
highly  specialized  than  such  statements  imply.  For  example,  ability  to 
respond  to  7  +  5  does  not  insure  the  ability  to  respond  to  17  +  5, 
21  -f-  5,  and  so  forth.  If  this  is  true,  it  is  necessary  that  the  teacher 
recognize  not  fifty  nor  even  one  hundred  addition  combinations  but 
some  three  or  four  hundred  different  combinations.  It  now  appears 
that  there  are  several  thousand  specific  habits  (fixed  associations)  to 
be  learned  in  the  field  of  arithmetic  and  the  teacher  cannot  be  said  to 
have  a  clear  understanding  of  the  objectives  in  this  field  until  he  knows 
what  constitutes  a  specific  habit  and  also  the  general  classes  of  specific, 
habits  to  be  learned. 

Relative  importance  of  the  rubrics  of  abilities.  Although  it  is  not 
possible  to  give  a  definite  answer  to  the  question  implied  in  the  para- 
graph heading,  certain  considerations  may  be  noted.  The  elementary 
school  is  responsible  for  engendering  a  large  number  of  specific  habits 
in  reading  (both  oral  and  silent),  arithmetic,  handwriting,  spelling,  and 
language.  This  may  be  considered  the  chief  responsibility  of  the  ele- 
mentary school,  at  least  up  until  the  end  of  the  sixth  grade,  but  it  is 
also  expected  to  contribute  to  the  engendering  of  knowledge  and  general 
patterns  of  conduct. 

In  the  high  school  the  number  of  specific  habits  to  be  engendered 
is  relatively  small  except  in  algebra,  foreign  language,  typewriting, 
stenography,  practical  and  fine  arts,  and  athletics.  In  the  other  subjects 
of  instruction  knowledge  represents  an  important  rubric  of  objectives. 
The  engendering  of  ideals  and  attitudes  is  also  an  important  respon- 
sibility of  the  high  school.  In  fact  it  may  be  argued  that  this  constitutes 
its  chief  responsibility.  However,  the  acceptance  of  this  thesis  would 
not  mean  that  high-school  teachers  should  limit  their  objectives  to  the 
engendering  of  general  patterns  of  conduct. 

The  fact  that  knowledge  is  an  adaptive  control  of  conduct  gives  it 
importance.  Obviously  it  is  not  possible  to  anticipate  all  of  the  situa- 
tions to  which  the  adults  of  the  future  will  be  called  upon  to  respond 

[10] 


and  to  equip  children  for  meeting  them  by  engendering  only  fixed 
controls  of  conduct.  Even  if  all  the  possible  situations  of  the  future 
were  known,  some  of  them  would  occur  so  infrequently  in  the  lives  of 
most  persons  that  it  would  be  inadvisable  to  attempt  to  engender 
ready-made  responses  for  them.  However,  the  possession  of  knowledge 
is  not  sufficient  to  insure  satisfactory  conduct  when  confronted  with 
novel  situations.  The  functioning  of  knowledge  is  governed  by  ideals 
and  attitudes.  These  constitute  "mindsets"  that  form  the  basis  of  satis- 
faction or  annoyance  in  the  functioning  of  knowledge  elements  in  the 
solving  of  problems.  A  person  who  is  grossly  lacking  in  ideals  and 
attitudes  would  be  likely  to  respond  to  novel  situations  in  a  very  erratic 
manner  even  though  he  possessed  much  knowledge. 

Achievement  versus  the  activity  of  doing  learning  exercises.  The 
reader's  attention  has  already  been  called  to  the  distinction  between 
"learning  activity"  and  "achievement,"  or  the  changes  produced  in  the 
learner  by  the  activity.  The  material  product  of  a  student's  learning 
activity  usually  has  little  or  no  direct  value.  The  themes  written  in 
English  classes,  the  solutions  obtained  to  problems  in  mathematics,  the 
manipulations  of  apparatus  in  the  laboratory,  the  answers  given  to 
questions  in  the  classroom,  and  other  performances  required  of  students 
seldom  contribute  directly  to  the  welfare  of  those  giving  them  or  to  the 
welfare  of  the  community.  The  themes  seldom  contain  anything  orig- 
inal; the  problems  usually  have  already  been  solved  by  others;  the 
answers  to  the  questions  are  generally  known;  "experimenting"  in 
the  laboratory  seldom  results  in  discoveries.  In  the  shop,  and  some- 
times in  the  laboratory,  the  product  of  learning  activities  may  have  a 
value  but  in  general  the  doing  of  learning  exercises  is  merely  a  means 
to  an  end,  the  education  of  students. 

The  outcomes  of  the  learning  process  are  subjective.  One  cannot 
tell  by  looking  at  a  student  what  changes  have  been  made  in  his  mind. 
His  knowledge  cannot  be  measured  directly  by  means  of  a  yard  stick 
or  other  instruments  similar  to  those  used  in  making  physical  measure- 
ments. We  can  know  his  abilities  only  through  his  conduct  or  perform- 
ance. Consequently,  in  evaluating  achievement  the  teacher  necessarily 
deals  with  performances. 

In  seeking  to  learn  about  a  student's  achievements,  teachers  fre- 
quently ask,  "How  many  problems  have  you  solved?"  "Have  you  read 
the  number  of  pages  assigned?"  "Did  you  find  answers  to  all  of  the 
questions  which  I  dictated?"  "Have  you  written  up  the  experiment 
that  you  performed  in  the  laboratory?"  "Have  you  translated  all  of 
the  sentences  assigned?"    The  unfortunate  thing  about  such  inquiries 

[11] 


is  that  they  tend  to  be  interpreted  literally  by  both  teachers  and 
students.  The  teacher  should  think  of  a  student's  response  to  such 
questions  as  a  convenient  though  very  inaccurate  way  of  telling  what 
he  has  learned.  The  number  of  problems  which  a  student  has  solved 
is  in  itself  unimportant.  One  student  may  obtain  correct  answers  for 
all  of  the  problems  and  learn  little  or  nothing  about  how  to  solve 
problems,  while  another  student  may  solve  only  a  few  of  the  problems 
but  learn  much  about  problem  solving.  A  student  who  reads  the  entire 
number  of  pages  assigned  may  have  learned  much  less  than  one  who 
has  read  only  half  of  the  lesson. 

It  is  not  intended  to  imply  that  the  teacher  should  not  ask  his 
students  about  the  number  and  magnitude  of  their  learning  activities, 
but  he  should  consider  this  procedure  only  as  a  means  for  ascertaining 
what  they  have  learned.  Many  teachers  keep  an  elaborate  record  of 
student  performances  which  show  the  number  of  exercises  completed 
by  each  student  and  a  description  of  the  quality  of  the  performance. 
Such  records  may  be  convenient  but  they  tend  to  place  the  emphasis 
where  it  should  not  be.  A  record  of  "ability  to  do"  would  be  much 
more  significant. 

Specifications  of  the  quality  of  abilities.  A  classified  list  of  abili- 
ties to  be  engendered  does  not  constitute  a  complete  statement  of  the 
teacher's  immediate  objectives.  It  remains  to  describe  the  desired 
quality  of  the  abilities  enumerated.  The  bond  between  a  situation 
(stimulus)  and  a  response  may  be  formed  in  several  degrees  of  strength. 
Ability  to  operate  a  typewriter  may  vary  from  that  represented  by 
typing  only  a  few  words  per  minute  to  the  degree  of  skill  possessed 
by  an  expert  typist.  "Knowledge  of  a  principle"  varies  from  a  hazy 
understanding  of  it  plus  ability  to  repeat  it  orally  or  in  writing  to  the 
ability  to  apply  it  in  solving  problems.  Hence,  the  enumeration  of  the 
abilities  to  be  engendered  should  be  supplemented  by  the  specifications 
of  the  quality  of  each. 

"Mastery"  of  knowledge  as  an  objective.  There  are  several  de- 
grees of  the  acquisition  of  knowledge.  A  person  who  merely  memorizes 
a  statement  has  acquired  the  symbols  of  knowledge.  He  does  not  un- 
derstand their  meaning  or  at  least  only  to  a  slight  extent.  A  somewhat 
higher  level  of  learning  is  attained  by  one  who  "understands"  the  state- 
ments which  he  is  able  to  repeat.  He  has  acquired  ideas,  not  merely 
symbols.  A  still  higher  level  is  attained  when  a  learner  associates  his 
"new  ideas"  with  other  knowledge  and  becomes  conscious  of  their  rela- 
tionships. He  is  able  to  explain  and  to  illustrate  his  statements.  He  is 
not  dependent  upon  the  language  of  the  author  but  can  express  his 

[12] 


ideas  in  his  own  words.  "Mastery"  has  been  used  to  designate  a  still 
more  advanced  stage  of  learning  which  is  characterized  by  "ability  to 
use  knowledge." 

"Mastery"  as  an  objective  means  that  the  teacher  emphasizes  the 
application  or  use  of  knowledge  rather  than  merely  its  acquisition.  It  is 
a  common  observation  that  students  frequently  fail  to  apply  what  they 
know  or  do  so  very  unsatisfactorily.  In  many  cases  a  truer  statement 
of  existing  conditions  would  be  that  the  students  have  only  memorized 
symbols  of  knowledge  and  consequently  have  no  real  knowledge  to 
apply.  One  cause  of  this  condition  is  the  failure  of  teachers  to  set  ob- 
jectives that  emphasize  use  of  knowledge.  The  concept  of  "mastery" 
as  an  objective  emphasizes  the  distinction  between  performance  and 
achievement  which  we  have  already  pointed  out.  "Mastery"  focuses 
attention  upon  the  outcomes  of  learning  activity  rather  than  upon  the 
doing  of  learning  exercises. 

Permanency  of  controls  of  conduct.  The  education  of  a  child  looks 
to  his  future.  Although  his  school  experience  may  constitute  an  impor- 
tant phase  of  his  present  life  and  thereby  add  to  his  present  happiness 
and  well-being,  the  fundamental  justification  for  our  schools,  particu- 
larly our  high  schools,  must  be  derived  from  the  preparation  which 
students  receive  for  participation  in  the  activities  of  adult  life.  This 
means  that  the  teacher  must  endeavor  to  engender  controls  of  conduct 
which  possess  sufficient  permanency  to  be  effective  five,  ten  or  twenty 
years  after  the  period  of  the  child's  education.  Specific  habits  tend  to 
deteriorate  when  not  used.  Ideas,  concepts,  facts,  and  principles  which 
are  not  mastered  and  well  organized  are  usually  quickly  forgotten. 
Ideals  and  particularly  attitudes,  interests  and  tastes  tend  to  be  more 
permanent.  Religious  beliefs,  political  affiliations,  hobbies,  interest  in 
music,  a  fondness  for  out-of-door  sports,  an  attitude  of  fair-mindedness 
and  the  like  are  frequently  acquired  in  childhood  and  persist  as  effective 
controls  of  conduct  throughout  life.  Hence,  when  knowledge  is  the 
objective,  "mastery"  and  organization  should  be  emphasized.  Further- 
more, ideals,  attitudes,  interests  and  tastes  should  occupy  a  prominent 
place  in  the  objectives  of  high-school  teachers.  Otherwise  the  school 
will  fail  to  fulfill  its  function  because  the  outcomes  engendered  will 
deteriorate  and  atrophy  so  that  they  will  not  be  effective  in  controlling 
conduct  in  adult  life. 

An  illustration  of  immediate  objectives  in  algebra.  Dalman8  has 
described  a  set  of  objective  standards  of  attainment  in  first-year  algebra 


8Dalman,   Murray  A.     "Hurdles,   a   series  of   calibrated   objective   tests    in   first 
year  algebra."  Journal  of  Educational  Research,  1:46-62,  January,  1920. 

[13] 


for  addition,  subtraction,  factoring,  simultaneous  equations  and  quad- 
ratic equations.  For  each  topic  four  lists  of  exercises  were  assembled 
and  labeled  C,  B,  A,  and  A-J-,  in  accordance  with  the  system  of  school 
marks  employed.  The  exercises  in  any  one  list  were  judged  to  be  ap- 
proximately equal  in  difficulty,  but  as  suggested  by  their  labels  the  suc- 
cessive lists  for  any  topic  increased  in  difficulty. 

These  lists  of  exercises  define  standards  of  achievement  for  the 
topics  of  first-year  algebra.  The  goal  set  for  a  student  is  not  the  doing 
of  so  many  exercises  but  the  attainment  of  the  ability  to  do  exercises 
of  a  certain  kind  and  difficulty.  When  a  student  thought  he  had  ac- 
quired sufficient  habits  and  knowledge  to  do  the  C  list  of  exercises  on  a 
certain  topic,  he  was  given  an  apportunity  to  do  so.  If  he  failed  to  do 
these  exercises  correctly,  he  knew  that  he  had  not  yet  attained  the  goal 
set  for  him  and  was  directed  to  engage  in  doing  learning  exercises  in 
order  to  acquire  sufficient  ability  to  pass  the  first  hurdle.  After  he  had 
demonstrated  that  he  possessed  the  ability  to  do  the  C  list  of  exercises, 
he  was  assigned  other  learning  exercises  to  engender  the  additional 
ability  required  for  the  B  list  and  so  on. 

An  illustration  of  immediate  objectives  in  terms  of  exercises  to 
be  done.  In  a  class  in  Ancient  and  Medieval  History  the  instructor 
divided  his  assignment  of  topics  for  notebook  work  into  four  lists.  For 
example,  on  the  "Downfall  of  the  Republic,"  the  assignment  was  as 
follows : 

LIST  I 

1.  List  the  classes  of  society  during  this  period. 

2.  Name   the    leaders    of    this    century    and    designate    the    most    important 
services  of  each. 

3.  Summarize  the  wars  of  Rome  and  show  what  was  gained  or  lost  by  each. 

4.  List  the  triumvirates  of  the  period  and  show  why  each  was  formed. 

5.  What  Latin  writers  made  this  century  famous?     Show  how. 

6.  Prepare  a  three  page  biography  of  Julius  Caesar. 

LIST  II 

7.  Prepare  a  biography  of  Cicero.     (3  pages) 

8.  Outline  Section  83  in  Breasted,  "Ancient  Times." 

LIST  III 

9.  Outline  Section  84  in  Breasted,  "Ancient  Times." 

10.  Write  biographical  sketches  of  Marcus  and  Sulla. 

LIST  IV 

11.  Outline  Section  85  in  Breasted,  "Ancient  Times." 

12.  Outline  ten  pages  from  Davis  Readings,  p.  103-42. 

13.  Outline  ten  pages  from  Monroe's  Source  Book. 

14.  See  your  teacher  for  a  special  project. 

[14] 


In  order  to  receive  a  grade  of  D,  the  lowest  grade  recognized  by 
the  school  as  passing,  the  student  was  required  to  do  satisfactorily  all 
of  the  exercises  in  List  I;  for  a  grade  of  C,  all  in  List  II  in  addition  to 
those  of  List  I;  for  a  grade  of  B,  List  I  plus  List  II  plus  List  III  and  so 
forth.  This  illustration  for  history,  unlike  that  given  for  algebra,  does 
not  define  standards  of  achievement  in  terms  of  ability  to  do.  The 
explicit  objective  is  to  do  certain  exercises  rather  than  to  acquire  certain 
abilities.  However,  the  acquisition  of  knowledge  objectives  is  implicit 
and  could  easily  be  called  to  the  attention  of  the  students.  The  topics 
in  List  IV,  required  for  a  grade  of  A,  are  not  materially  different  in 
kind  nor  in  difficulty  from  those  in  List  I.  However,  in  history  the 
amount  of  information  obtained  increases  one's  understanding  of  the 
subject,  and  the  students  who  completed  all  four  lists  undoubtedly 
acquired  more  knowledge  than  those  who  did  only  a  few  of  the  exercises. 

An  illustration  of  general  objectives.  Although  the  teacher  should 
formulate  his  immediate  objectives  in  terms  of  the  abilities  to  be  engen- 
dered, he  may  properly  make  certain  explicit  specifications  in  regard 
to  the  character  of  learning  performances.  The  following  formulation9 
was  worked  out  by  the  faculty  of  one  high  school  and  printed  on 
placards  which  were  posted  in  the  various  rooms  of  the  building.  One 
feature  of  these  objectives  is  their  organization. 

SPECIFICATIONS  FOR  A  GRADE  OF  C 

1.  All  the  work  asked  of  all  the  class,  such  as  laboratory  notebooks,  themes,  oral 
and  written  tests,  exercises,  map-books,  book  reviews,  notebooks,  translations,  and  so 
forth  must  be  handed  to  the  instructor  before  any  credit  will  be  given. 

2.  This  work  must  be  reasonably  neat  and  accurate.  Poorly  spelled  and  illegible 
work  cannot  be  accepted  for  credit. 

3.  Good  attention  and  steady  employment  during  the  class  hours  are  required  of 
all  pupils  who  are  given  credit  for  a  course. 

The  quality  of  the  work  for  a  grade  of  C  should  be  75  percent  perfect. 

SPECIFICATIONS  FOR  A  GRADE  OF  B 

1,  2,  3  as  previously  given. 

4.  The  average  of  all  test  grades  must  be  85  percent  perfect. 

5.  Pupils  securing  this  grade  must  show  some  initiative  in  attacking  new  work, 
that  is,  they  should,  by  consulting  such  aids  as  a  dictionary,  indexes,  collateral  texts, 
and  so  forth,  by  reviewing  what  they  have  already  learned,  and  by  paying  careful 
attention  to  the  assignment,  be  able  to  get  the  advanced  work  without  much  help 
from  the  teacher. 

6.  In  every  particular  the  quality  of  the  work  for  a  grade  of  B  should  be  superior 
to  the  quality  of  the  work  for  a  grade  of  C. 


"Bailey,  W.  W.  ''The  administration  of  quantitative  and  qualitative  credit  for 
high-school  work,"     The  School  Review,  25:309-10,  May,  1917. 

A  few  minor  changes  have  been  made  in  the  wording  of  the  following  statements 
in  order  to  assist  the  reader  in  understanding  them  when  removed  from  the  original 
context. 

[15] 


7.  Recitations  should  be  well  made  without  the  aid  of  the  teacher. 

The  quality  of  the  work  for  a  grade  of  B  should  be  85  -percent  -perfect.      . 

SPECIFICATIONS  FOR  A  GRADE  OF  A 

1,  2,  3,  5,  7  as  previously  given. 

8.  The  a\rerage  of  test  grades  must  be  95  percent  perfect. 

9.  Persistent  daily  preparation  of  assignments  with  but  little  urging  and  with  but 
little  help  on  the  part  of  the  teacher. 

10.  Accuracy,  neatness,  legibility,  correct  spelling  must  be  the  distinguishing  char- 
acteristics of  the  work  graded  A. 

11.  The  quantity  of  work  done  by  a  pupil  receiving  grade  A  should  exceed  that 
done  by  a  pupil  receiving  grade  B  or  C. 

The  quality  of  the  work  for  a  grade  of  A  should  be  95  percent  perfect. 

Adjustment  of  objectives  to  individual  differences.  When  we  re- 
member that  usually  the  students  grouped  together  for  instruction  will 
vary  greatly  with  reference  to  their  capacity  to  do  school  work,  a  num- 
ber of  questions  arise  relative  to  the  adjustment  of  immediate  objectives 
to  individual  differences.  Should  a  teacher  set  the  same  objectives  for 
all  students?  If  he  attempts  to  secure  "mastery,"  what  is  to  be  done 
with  the  very  bright?  Should  the  standards  of  achievement  be  such 
that  no  student  will  fail? 

The  usual  practice  is  to  set  the  same  objectives  for  all  students 
taking  a  given  subject  and  then  to  describe  the  degree  of  their  attain- 
ments by  the  grades  awarded  them.  The  best  students  in  the  class  are 
given  a  grade  of  A,  signifying  a  degree  of  achievement  which  in  some 
cases  approaches  "mastery."  Others  are  given  a  grade  of  B,  signifying 
a  somewhat  lower  degree  of  achievement  on  the  same  topics.  Grades 
of  C  and  D  signify  still  lower  degrees  of  achievement.  All  students, 
however,  have  studied  the  same  topics  and  to  a  considerable  extent 
have  attempted  the  same  learning  exercises.  Their  performances  on 
these  exercises  may  approach  equivalence  in  quantity  but  it  is  obvious 
that  all  have  not  acquired  the  same  controls  of  conduct. 

The  practice  described  in  the  preceding  paragraph  has  been 
severely  criticized  because  under  it  few  if  any  students  other  than  those 
receiving  a  grade  of  A  or  B,  approach  the  level  of  achievement  which 
we  have  described  as  "mastery."  The  result  is  that  those  who  fall  short 
of  "mastery"  do  not  learn  anything  well.  It  has  been  asserted  that 
"half-learning"  predominates  in  our  schools.  A  habit  or  an  item  of 
knowledge  which  is  not  learned  well  enough  to  be  used  has  little  or  no 
value.  Therefore,  it  is  contended  that  we  should  adjust  our  objectives 
to  individual  differences  so  that  the  less  capable  of  our  students  will 
approach  "mastery"  of  the  topics  which  they  undertake.  This  would 
necessitate  that  the  number  of  topics  studied  be  adjusted  to  suit  the 
student's  capacity  to  learn  or  that  the  time  be  appropriately  varied. 

[16] 


Some  "mastery"  enthusiasts  assert  that  under  an  appropriate  formula- 
tion of  immedate  objectives  no  student  should  "fail,"  although  some 
students  might  require  a  much  longer  time  than  others  to  complete  the 
minimum  list  of  topics. 

In  the  illustration  of  objective  standards  of  achievement  in  first- 
year  algebra,  an  adjustment  of  objectives  to  individuals  might  be 
secured  by  requiring  all  students  to  acquire  ability  to  do  the  exercises 
of  the  C  lists.  When  a  student  had  attained  this  objective  on  a  given 
topic,  he  should  be  advised  to  continue  his  learning  and  attempt  to 
attain  the  higher  levels  of  achievement,  unless  it  appeared  that  he  might 
employ  his  time  more  profitably  by  beginning  on  a  new  topic.  In  the 
illustration  of  general  objectives  it  was  implied  that  an  adjustment 
would  be  secured  by  assigning  additional  topics  for  study  to  the  more 
capable  students. 

Training  in  the  art  of  learning  as  an  objective.  Prior  to  about 
1900  "general  training,"  commonly  referred  to  as  "formal  discipline," 
was  regarded  as  the  paramount  objective  of  education,  particularly 
of  that  given  in  the  intermediate  and  high  schools.  It  was  contended 
that  the  study  of  certain  highly  organized  school  subjects,  such  as 
mental  arithmetic,  English  grammar,  algebra,  geometry  and  Latin 
grammar  would  result  in  training  the  mind  so  that  one  would  be  more 
efficient  in  doing  other  types  of  work.  Beginning  about  1890  this  point 
of  view  was  vigorously  attacked  with  the  result  that  there  was  a  general 
reaction  from  the  doctrine  of  formal  discipline.10  Since  1900  there  has 
been  a  definite  tendency  to  emphasize  the  character  of  content11  of  the 
subject-matter  of  our  schools  and  to  make  it  practical.  In  recent  years 
it  has  been  considered  highly  important  in  formulating  a  course  of 
study,  or  in  writing  a  textbook,  to  limit  the  content  to  subject-matter 
that  could  be  shown  to  be  directly  useful  in  certain  adult  activities. 

The  movement  on  the  whole  has  been  very  beneficial  to  our  schools, 
but  it  has  been  accompanied  by  an  attempt  to  minimize  or  even  to 
neglect  certain  important  by-products  of  learning  of  which  "training 
in  the  art  of  learning"  is  one.  A  student  learns  by  doing.  We  ask  him 
to  answer  questions,  to  read  textbooks,  to  solve  problems,  to  prepare 


"For  discussion  of  formal  discipline  see: 

Bagley,  W.  C.  Educational  Values.  New  York:  The  Macmillan  Company,  1911, 
Chapter  XII. 

Freeman,  F.  N.  How  Children  Learn.  Boston:  Houghton  Mifflin  Company, 
1917,  Chapter  XIII. 

Judd,  Charles  Hubbard.  Psychology  of  High  School  Subjects.  Boston:  Ginn 
and  Company,  1915,  Chapter  XVII. 

"Except  for  a  few  subjects  this  content  is  largely  knowledge. 

[17] 


written  reports  and  to  do  other  school  exercises.  If  he  is  to  be  efficient 
as  a  learner,  he  must  be  trained  in  the  art  of  learning,  that  is,  he  must 
be  trained  in  the  art  of  answering  questions,  in  the  art  of  reading  a 
textbook,  in  the  art  of  solving  problems  and  in  the  art  of  preparing  a 
written  report,  and  so  on.  Some  pupils  seem  to  grasp  this  art  easily 
and  with  little  or  no  specific  training  by  the  teacher  and  gradually 
develop  an  effective  technique,  but  the  great  majority  of  students  fail 
to  acquire  a  technique  that  enables  them  to  be  efficient  in  doing  the 
learning  exercises  that  the  teacher  assigns. 

A  teacher's  efficiency  depends  upon  the  effectiveness  of  his  stu- 
dents as  learners.  For  this  reason,  if  for  no  other,12  the  teacher  should 
recognize  training  in  the  art  of  learning  as  one  of  his  important  objec- 
tives. He  should  teach  his  students  to  read  the  text  book  in  the  way 
it  should  be  read.  If  in  a  particular  course  the  textbook  is  to  be  read 
carefully  with  attention  given  to  concisely  formulated  sentences  and 
paragraphs,  the  student  should  be  trained  in  this  type  of  reading.  If 
the  textbook  is  to  be  read  merely  for  the  purpose  of  finding  answers  to 
assigned  questions,  then  the  teacher  should  train  his  students  to  do  this 
kind  of  reading  well.  If  the  teacher  asks  his  students  to  prepare  themes 
or  other  written  exercises,  he  should  train  them  in  the  art  of  doing  these 
things.  Each  teacher  should  assume  the  responsibility  for  making  cer- 
tain that  his  students  become  skillful  in  doing  the  particular  types  of 
learning  exercises  which  he  assigns. 

One's  success  in  meeting  any  situation  in  adult  life  frequently  de- 
pends upon  his  ability  to  acquire  new  habits  and  new  knowledge. 
Hence,  if  he  is  skillful  in  the  art  of  learning,  he  has  at  his  command  a 
means  for  meeting  his  responsibilities.  Unlike  habits  and  knowledge, 
the  art  of  learning  when  once  acquired  tends  to  be  permanent.  In  this 
respect  it  resembles  an  attitude. 

A  teacher's  real  objectives  implied  in  the  learning  exercises 
assigned  and  his  tests  of  achievement.  The  formal  statement  of  imme- 
diate objectives  or  aim  to  which  a  teacher  subscribes  does  not  neces- 
sarily specify  the  goal  toward  which  he  directs  his  students.  His  real 
objectives  are  implied  in  the  learning  exercises  he  assigns  and  in  his 
tests  of  achievement.  This  statement  means  that  the  goals  toward  which 
a  teacher  is  directing  his  students  are  determined  by  the  exercises  he 
asks  them  to  do,  including  the  questions  asked  during  the  recitation 
period  and  the  tests  which  he  administers.  The  teacher  who  asks  ques- 
tions calling  for  mere  factual  answers,  implies  the  objective  of  memoriz- 


2Training  in  the  art  of  learning  can  be  justified  as  an  objective  on  other  grounds. 

[18] 


ing  isolated  facts.  The  teacher  who  quizzes  students  on  the  text  implies 
the  objective  of  learning  the  textbook  which  is  usually  interpreted  to 
mean  "memorizing  the  language  of  the  author."  The  teacher  who  em- 
phasizes reasons  why,  cause  and  effect,  comparison,  and  organization 
of  information  implies  very  different  objectives.  The  teacher  of  math- 
ematics who  stresses  correct  answers  and  neglects  the  procedures  by 
which  the  answers  are  obtained  implies  objectives  different  from  those 
implied  by  another  teacher  who  emphasizes  the  methods  by  which  the 
student  arrives  at  his  answers. 

The  general  principle  expressed  in  the  preceding  paragraph  is  one 
of  major  importance  in  considering  the  immediate  objectives  of  teachers. 
The  formulation  of  objectives  has  received  emphasis  in  the  activities 
of  educational  associations.  Several  pretentious  investigations  have  been 
devoted  largely  or  wholly  to  the  determination  of  the  "best"  objectives. 
Such  endeavors  are  commendable  but  it  is  necessary  to  bear  in  mind 
that  mere  "paper"  objectives  will  not  affect  the  work  of  our  schools. 
When  teachers  are  asked,  they  are  frequently  able  to  state  approved 
objectives.  In  some  school  systems  they  are  required  to  keep  a  "plan 
book"  and  one  of  the- specified  items  of  the  plan  is  the  "aim  of  the 
lesson."  However,  observers  of  actual  teaching  report  that  in  many 
instances  the  objectives  implied  in  the  learning  exercises,  particularly 
the  questions  asked,  and  the  evalution  of  student  performances  are  very 
different  from  those  stated  by  the  teacher. 

Comparison  of  "paper  objectives"  and  the  objectives  implied  in 
learning  exercises.  In  a  recitation  in  English  literature,  which  the  ob- 
server13 states  is  not  an  extreme  case,  the  teacher  began  the  work  of  the 
hour  by  making  the  assignment  for  the  next  day  as  follows:  "Next 
time  please  outline  the  life  of  Macauley  and  read  all  of  Macauley  in 
this  book."  Following  this  statement  an  ode  composed  by  a  member 
of  the  class  was  read.  Then  the  teacher  began  a  rapid-fire  questioning 
which  may  be  illustrated  by  the  following  samples: 

As  a  romanticist,  what  qualities  do  you  think  Wordsworth  possessed? 

What  other  romantic  element  besides  power  of  description? 

What  other  poet  wrote  on  nature? 

What  differences? 

Does  any  other  element  enter  in? 

How  does  Coleridge  introduce  the  supernatural? 

Describe  the  "Phantom  Ship." 

Who  was  "Life  in  Death?" 

In  what  poem  did  she  appear? 


"The  writer  is  indebted  to  Chas.  W.  Knudsen  for  this  and  the  other  reports  re- 
produced in  the  following  pages. 

[19] 


Will  you  describe  her  for  us? 

What  feature  was  so  particularly  striking? 

What  color  words  did  he  use? 

How  did  he  express  his  ideas  on  red? 

What  else? 

Lillian,  did  you  have  any  other  color  in  mind? 

When? 

In  the  story  of  the  "Ancient  Mariner,"  did  he  tell  the  story  so  that  the  reader 

felt  he  had  been  on  a  journey? 
How  did  he  hold  the  wedding  guest? 
How  did  he  first  hold  him? 
How  many  guests  were  walking  in  this  path? 
Now  coming  to  Keats,  was  Keats  a  nature  poet? 
To  what  extent? 
If  you  were  to  compare  Coleridge,  WTordsworth,  Shelley  and  Keats,  which  one  has 

keenest  insight  into  nature? 
Why  do  you  think  so? 
How  about  Shelley? 

A  total  of  seventy-eight  such  questions  were  asked  and  answered  be- 
fore the  gong  was  sounded  at  the  end  of  the  period,  that  is,  within  less 
than  forty  minutes  or  at  the  rate  of  about  two  per  minute.  One  may 
properly  ask,  what  kind  of  learning  exercises  did  this  teacher  ask  her 
students  to  do?  What  kinds  of  mental  activity  did  they  engage  in? 
What  did  they  learn?  A  study  of  the  complete  list  of  questions  sug- 
gests a  classification  under  three  general  types.  A  number  of  them 
explicitly  call  for  factual  answers  which  a  student  would  learn  by  read- 
ing his  text.   The  following  are  samples  of  this  type  of  question: 

In  what  poem  does  "Life  in  Death"  appear? 
Was  Keats  a  nature  poet? 
Did  Shelley  use  flowery  words? 
Who  had  a  morbid  outlook  on  life? 

Other  questions  required  students  to  make  inferences  but  the  answers 

which  the  teacher  accepted  were  essentially  factual.    Samples  of  these 

are: 

As  a  romanticist  what  qualities  does  Wordsworth  possess? 

What  elements  of  the  romantic  movements  do  we  find  in  the  poem  of  St.  Agnes? 

What  do  you  suppose  Wordsworth  believed  regarding  religion? 

A  third  class  of  questions  is  composed  of  those  that  required  students  to 

explain,  such  as: 

How  does  he   (the  poet)   express  his  ideas  on  red? 
How  did  the  Ancient  Mariner  hold  the  wedding  guest? 
What  does  "like  a  star  of  Heaven"  mean? 
Who  are  "the  heavy-winged  thieves?" 

The  first  of  these  three  types  of  questions  implied  the  objective  of 
memorizing  specific  facts  with  little  or  no  attention  to  their  relation  to 
other  facts.    The  second  and  third  types  of  questions  imply  the  objec- 

[20] 


tive  of  understanding  certain  aspects  of  the  poems  to  which  they  refer, 
but  it  is  likely  that  the  knowledge  resulting  from  answering  such  ques- 
tions would  be  lacking  in  richness  of  association  and  organization. 

In  response  to  the  request  of  the  observer  this  teacher  of  English 
literature  stated  her  aim  as  being  to  engender  "the  ability  to  recognize 
good  literature  and  understand  and  appreciate  it."  Although  this  aim 
is  stated  in  general  terms,  the  lack  of  agreement  between  it  and  the 
objectives  implied  in  the  questions  asked  and  the  assignment  for  the 
next  day's  lesson  is  obvious.  The  report  of  this  observer  furnishes  a 
good  illustration  of  the  failure  of  a  teacher  to  recognize  that  his  real 
objectives  are  implied  in  the  exercises  which  he  asks  his  students  to 
do.  Apparently  this  teacher  was  unaware  that  she  was  stimulating  her 
students  to  work  toward  objectives  which  are  incompatible  with  the 
general  aim  that  she  stated. 

A  teacher  of  general  science  stated  his  aims  as  follows: 

1.  To  interest  pupils  in  other  sciences,  especially  chemistry. 

2.  To  stress  the  practical  applications  of  facts  and  principles  from  the  textbook. 

3.  To  cultivate  an  attitude  in  the  minds  of  the  students  that  problems  do  exist  and 
to  suggest  some  methods  of  attacking  these  problems. 

During  the  first  part  of  the  recitation  period  this  teacher  asked  thirty- 
three  questions  such  as  the  following: 

What  topic  are  we  discussing  today? 

What  is  the  first  thing  that  we  take  up  in  the  discussion  of  heat? 

How  do  we  get  our  heat? 

What  are  some  of  the  different  fuels? 

Some  others? 

Chester,  discuss  the  formation  of  coal. 

Are  we  having  much  coal  formed  today? 

Can  you  explain? 

With  what  did  formation  of  coal  start? 

Do  you  think  our  vegetation  is  so  luxurious? 

Would  this  make  any  difference? 

Kenneth,  can  you  give  us  something  on  this? 

What  name  do  we  have  for  the  first  coal? 

The  next? 

The  next? 

How  do  we  distinguish  between  anthracite  and  bituminous  coal? 

If  you  were  making  illuminating  gas,  what  coal  would  you  use? 

What  are  three  methods  for  distributing  heat? 

Irene,  what  is  conduction? 

Can  you  think  of  any  examples? 

Gladys,  can  you  think  of  any? 

Think  over  this  and  see  if  you  can  think  what  is  happening  to  the  molecules. 

James,  how  is  heat  distributed  by  convection? 

Harold,  can  you  add  anything? 

By  what  method  is  heat  distributed  by  the  sun? 

Would  you  say  it  moves  in  currents? 

Is  the  space  through  which  the  rays  pass  hot  or  cold? 

[21] 


Do  you  agree  with  that,  Harold: 

Do  you  remember  when  we  discussed  the  color  of  radiators? 

Why  did  we  decide  on  a  dark  colored  radiator? 

Will  anything  be  warm  unless  it  absorbs  heat: 

Does  this  space  absorb  heat? 

Following  this  questioning,  the  class  was  divided  into  five  groups 

and  directed  to  write  the  discussions  of  certain  topics  on  the  board.   The 

following  is  a  sample: 

Heating  by  means  of  stoves:  Fifty  years  before  the  War  we  had  an  ordinary 
stove  which  was  round  and  it  was  made  of  iron  and  had  a  door  at  the  bottom 
and  one  at  the  top  for  the  smoke  to  go  out.  Then  Franklin  invented  a  stove 
which  was  a  fireplace  and  it  was  a  fireplace  with  another  iron  fireplace  inside  it. 
To  have  the  heat  the  ways  you  wanted  it.  there  was  a  damper  used  to  regulate 
the  temperature. 

After  the  students  had  finished  writing  on  the  topics  assigned,  cer- 
tain ones  were  called  upon  to  read  the  discussions  they  had  written. 
After  the  reading  of  a  discussion  the  teacher  asked  questions  relative 
to  the  topic.  The  following  are  representative  of  those  asked  on  the 
topic,  "Heating  by  means  of  stoves." 

What  was  the  purpose  of  the  door  at  the  top? 

What  was  the  purpose  of  the  door  at  the  bottom? 

Why  was  Franklin's  invention  better  than  the  old  method  of  fireplace? 

By  what  means  was  the  heat  distributed  by  the  fireplace? 

Where  did  at  lot  of  the  heat  go? 

How  was  Franklin's  stove  an  advantage? 

How  did  it  keep  the  heat  inside? 

(Teacher  then  read  a  description  of  Franklin's  stove). 

Tell  me  more  about  the  stoves  of  today. 

Can  you  see  any  reason  for  letting  the  oxygen  in  at  the  top  instead  of  the  bottom? 

How  many  agree? 

Does  anyone  see  a  reason  for  having  the  draft  at  the  top? 

The  assignment  which  was  given  just  before  the  bell  sounded  was: 
"Tomorrow  the  assignment  will  be  in  Fall,  page  247,  and  exercises  8,  9, 
10,  11  to  'radiant  heat.'  Pay  particular  attention  to  the  questions  and 
be  sure  you  know  what  to  do  when  you  come  to  class." 

It  is  difficult  to  identify  the  particular  objectives  which  the  ques- 
tions and  other  exercises  of  this  recitation  imply,  but  there  appears  to 
be  considerable  emphasis  upon  memorization  of  the  text.  Some  of  the 
questions  asked  might  have  furnished  a  basis  for  reflective  thinking  but 
the  total  number  asked  is  so  great  that  much  reflective  thinking  was 
not  possible.  This  case  furnished  another  illustration  of  a  conspicuous 
disagreement  between  a  teacher's  "paper"  objectives  and  those  implied 
in  the  exercises  he  asked  his  students  to  do. 

Objectives  implied  in  tests  of  achievement.  A  teacher  also  reveals 
his  objectives  in  the  tests  and  examinations  which  he  gives.    In  some 

[22] 


schools  it  is  the  policy  that  only  questions  and  exercises  which  the  stu- 
dents have  explicitly  studied  during  the  term  shall  be  included  in  the 
final  examination.  Some  teachers  are  accustomed  to  give  their  students 
a  long  list  of  questions  a  few  days  prior  to  the  final  examination  with 
the  understanding  that  the  examination  will  consist  of  questions  taken 
from  this  list.  Where  such  policies  prevail,  students  feel  that  they  have 
demonstrated  the  unfairness  of  an  examination  when  they  show  that 
it  includes  new  exercises. 

The  policy  that  no  new  questions  are  to  "be  asked  on  a  final  ex- 
amination and  particularly  the  practice  of  furnishing  students  with  a 
list  of  questions  implies  that  the  objectives  of  the  course  are  to  be  ob- 
tained by  memorizing  the  responses  to  be  given  to  particular  ques- 
tions. Although  memorization  is  involved  in  acquiring  knowledge,  evi- 
dence of  the  possession  of  knowledge  is  furnished  by  responding  to  new 
situations,  by  overcoming  difficulties,  and  by  solving  problems.  When 
a  student  answers  a  question  by  remembering  how  he  answered  it  on 
some  previous  occasion  or  how  the  author  or  the  teacher  answered  it, 
his  performance  possesses  little  value  as  evidence  of  his  knowledge.  In 
fact  it  merely  constitutes  evidence  that  he  has  memorized  certain  re- 
sponses. Hence  tests  and  examinations  which  do  not  include  some  new 
questions  imply  specific  habit  objectives  rather  than  knowledge  objec- 
tives. If  a  teacher  wishes  to  measure  the  knowledge  achievements  of 
his  students  he  should  include  at  least  some  "new"  questions  in  the 
examination  he  gives. 

What  is  commonly  called  the  "new  examination"  is  becoming  widely 
used  in  our  schools.  This  type  of  examination  has  merits  but  when  a 
teacher  uses  it  he  implies  that  he  expects  his  students  to  learn  to  do 
the  types  of  exercises  which  it  includes  and  it  seems  probable  that  the 
ability  to  respond  correctly  to  true-false  exercises,  completion  exer- 
cises and  the  like  is  not  the  same  as  the  ability  that  functions  in  meet- 
ing problematic  situations  requiring  reflective  thinking.  Of  course  when 
a  new  examination  is  given  for  the  first  time  the  implication  is  slight 
and  probably  will  not  be  detected  by  the  students  but  if  this  type  or 
measuring  instrument  is  used  regularly  students  will  begin  to  direct 
their  efforts  towards  learning  to  respond  to  such  exercises.  Some  of 
the  enthusiasts  for  the  new  examinations  are  compiling  lists  of  suitable 
exercises  with  the  idea  that  by  accumulating  a  large  number  they  will 
relieve  themselves  of  the  burden  of  constructing  exercises  when  they 
wish  to  measure  the  achievement  of  their  students.  Such  a  practice 
is  likely  to  increase  the  influence  of  this  type  of  examination  upon  the 
immediate  objectives  of  a  teacher. 

[23] 


Value  of  clearly  defined  objectives.  "A  clear  understanding  of 
immediate  objectives"  will  not  insure  efficient  teaching  but  it  constitutes 
one  essential  requirement.  A  teacher  who  does  not  know  very  definitely 
what  abilities  he  wishes  his  students  to  acquire  is»not  likely  to  be  very 
successful.  One  reason,  perhaps,.themain,f^1fcoh.  .^'fSy_so  many  teachers 
fail  to  engender  dynamic  kh^^'dg^iideds^a^lg^dS^,  interests,  tastes, 
and  so  forth,  is  that  they  have^nly  .the^vag^S^rt  of  notions  concern- 
ing the  nature  of  these  abilities.^     v_     \   >       ^J^S**     •- 

This  discussion  as  the  title  implre^^gygb^^J^5^}*e. objectives  of 
teachers  but  it  contains  import^jit .  S^^  J  ions  If  4r.sii  per  visors.  It  is 
the  policy  in  many  schools  to  require.  t^Qjteg^-t3§iprep.are  lesson  plans, 
one  item  of  which  is  a  statement  ojjjgW^r-^jjectiyes.  Considerable  im- 
portance is  attachd  to  these  "paper"  objectives.  Although  the  cases 
of  classroom  instruction  cited  may  not  be  entirely  typical,  they  do  dem- 
onstrate that  frequently  there  is  considerable  divergence  between  the 
"paper"  objectives  of  a  teacher  and  his  real  objectives  which  are  im- 
plied in  the  learning  exercises  that  he  assigns  and  the  tests  that  he 
gives  to  measure  the  achievements  of  his  students.  This  being  the  case 
a  supervisor  who  visits  classes  may  render  a  valuable  service  by  identi- 
fying the  implied  objectives  and  then  calling  the  teacher's  attention  to 
any  discrepancies  which  exist  between  them  and  the  "paper"  objectives 
given  in  the  lesson  plan. 


[24] 


